L-Alpha glycerylphosphorylcholine or choline alfoscerate, also known as Alpha GPC is a natural nootropic which works both on its own and also in combination with other nootropics. It can be found in the human body naturally in small amounts. It’s also present in some dairy products, wheat germ, and in organic meats. However, these dietary sources contain small amounts of GPC, which is why people prefer taking it through supplements.
As for newer nootropic drugs, there are unknown risks. “Piracetam has been studied for decades,” says cognitive neuroscientist Andrew Hill, the founder of a neurofeedback company in Los Angeles called Peak Brain Institute. But “some of [the newer] compounds are things that some random editor found in a scientific article, copied the formula down and sent it to China and had a bulk powder developed three months later that they’re selling. Please don’t take it, people!”
They reduce inflammation, are high in cancer-protecting antioxidants and help rid your blood of toxins. The natural nitrates in beets actually boost blood flow to the brain, helping with mental performance. Plus, during tough workouts, beets actually help boost energy and performance levels. I love them roasted or in salads — try my sweet potato beet hash or beet and goat cheese salad for some creative new ways to eat this brain food.
That left me with 329 days of data. The results are that (correcting for the magnesium citrate self-experiment I was running during the time period which did not turn out too great) days on which I happened to use my LED device for LLLT were much better than regular days. Below is a graph showing the entire MP dataseries with LOESS-smoothed lines showing LLLT vs non-LLLT days:
The difference in standard deviations is not, from a theoretical perspective, all that strange a phenomenon: at the very beginning of this page, I covered some basic principles of nootropics and mentioned how many stimulants or supplements follow a inverted U-curve where too much or too little lead to poorer performance (ironically, one of the examples in Kruschke 2012 was a smart drug which did not affect means but increased standard deviations).

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Blueberries. "Brainberries" is what Steven Pratt, MD, author of Superfoods Rx: Fourteen Foods Proven to Change Your Life, calls these tasty fruits. Pratt, who is also on staff at Scripps Memorial Hospital in La Jolla, Calif., says that in animal studies researchers have found that blueberries help protect the brain from oxidative stress and may reduce the effects of age-related conditions such as Alzheimer's disease or dementia. Studies have also shown that diets rich in blueberries significantly improved both the learning capacity and motor skills of aging rats, making them mentally equivalent to much younger rats. Ann Kulze, MD, author of Dr. Ann's 10-Step Diet: A Simple Plan for Permanent Weight Loss & Lifelong Vitality, recommends adding at least 1 cup of blueberries a day in any form -- fresh, frozen, or freeze-dried.
The AC-11 that Marcus mentioned for health is an extract from the Amazon jungle vine una de gato, and has been shown in laboratory and clinical trials to encourage DNA repair. The Mucuna pruriens he named for motivation is a legume that's a concentrated source of L-Dopa, which the body converts to the neurotransmitter dopamine. The Huperzia serrata Marcus selected for hunting is the same substance that induces lucid dreaming. This seems appropriate. While I felt the Alpha Brain helped my hunting, maybe I was dreaming. Or maybe a dream state of mind is good for hunting.

Dosage is apparently 5-10mg a day. (Prices can be better elsewhere; selegiline is popular for treating dogs with senile dementia, where those 60x5mg will cost $2 rather than $3532. One needs a veterinarian’s prescription to purchase from pet-oriented online pharmacies, though.) I ordered it & modafinil from Nubrain.com at $35 for 60x5mg; Nubrain delayed and eventually canceled my order - and my enthusiasm. Between that and realizing how much of a premium I was paying for Nubrain’s deprenyl, I’m tabling deprenyl along with nicotine & modafinil for now. Which is too bad, because I had even ordered 20g of PEA from Smart Powders to try out with the deprenyl. (My later attempt to order some off the Silk Road also failed when the seller canceled the order.)

Nootropics are classically defined as something that a) improves brain health, and b) does no harm. So, while many treatments being advertised online and on TV can be classified as nootropics, some of them don’t fit the bill because of the dangerous and damaging side effects they also confer upon the unwary consumer. In fact, most of the results you might get from searching ‘best brain pills’ are similarly not that great, let alone the best.

There is no official data on their usage, but nootropics as well as other smart drugs appear popular in the Silicon Valley. “I would say that most tech companies will have at least one person on something,” says Noehr. It is a hotbed of interest because it is a mentally competitive environment, says Jesse Lawler, a LA based software developer and nootropics enthusiast who produces the podcast Smart Drug Smarts. “They really see this as translating into dollars.” But Silicon Valley types also do care about safely enhancing their most prized asset – their brains – which can give nootropics an added appeal, he says.
Autism BDNF Brain brain fuel brain health Brain Injury Cholesterol choline DAI DHA Diabetes digestion Exercise Fat Functional Medicine gastric Gluten gut-brain Gut Brain Axis gut health Health intestinal permeability keto Ketogenic leaky Gut Learning Medicine Metabolism Music Therapy neurology Neuroplasticity neurorehabilitation Nutrition omega Paleo Physical Therapy Recovery Science second brain superfood synaptogenesis TBI Therapy tube feed uridine
Gibson and Green (2002), talking about a possible link between glucose and cognition, wrote that research in the area …is based on the assumption that, since glucose is the major source of fuel for the brain, alterations in plasma levels of glucose will result in alterations in brain levels of glucose, and thus neuronal function. However, the strength of this notion lies in its common-sense plausibility, not in scientific evidence… (p. 185).
In my SkepDoc column in Skeptic magazine (text available online) I reviewed the video series “Awakening from Alzheimer’s,” in which a journalist interviews numerous “experts” and claims that Alzheimer’s is for the most part preventable and can be reversed in 9 out of 10 patients! The recommendations of those “experts” are all over the map. There is nothing even remotely approaching a scientific consensus. They claim the main cause of Alzheimer’s is everything from gluten to obesity to lack of sleep to chronic Lyme disease to toxins spewed by “leaky gut” syndrome. They claim to have reversed Alzheimer’s with a wide variety of treatments: everything from coconut oil to a ketogenic diet to probiotics to strenuous exercise to various long lists of dietary supplements to psychological interventions that are considered successful if they make patients cry. There is no satisfactory evidence to support any of their claims.
Taking the tryptophan is fairly difficult. The powder as supplied by Bulk Nutrition is extraordinarily dry and fine; it seems to be positively hydrophobic. The first time I tried to swallow a teaspoon, I nearly coughed it out - the power had seemed to explode in my mouth and go down my lungs. Thenceforth I made sure to have a mouth of water first. After a while, I took a different tack: I mixed in as much Hericium as would fit in the container. The mushroom powder is wetter and chunkier than the tryptophan, and seems to reduce the problem. Combining the mix with chunks of melatonin inside a pill works even better.
Although research linking diet and dementia is still in its infancy, there are a few important relationships between nutrients and brain health that are worth exploring. Having a nourishing, well rounded diet gives our brain the best chance of avoiding disease. If your diet is unbalanced for whatever reason, you may want to consider a multivitamin and mineral complex and an omega-3 fatty acid supplement to help make up a few of the essentials. If you are considering taking a supplement it is best to discuss this with your GP or qualified healthcare professional.

Oxiracetam is one of the 3 most popular -racetams; less popular than piracetam but seems to be more popular than aniracetam. Prices have come down substantially since the early 2000s, and stand at around 1.2g/$ or roughly 50 cents a dose, which was low enough to experiment with; key question, does it stack with piracetam or is it redundant for me? (Oxiracetam can’t compete on price with my piracetam pile stockpile: the latter is now a sunk cost and hence free.)

He recommends a 10mg dose, but sublingually. He mentions COLURACETAM’s taste is more akin to that of PRAMIRACETAM than OXIRACETAM, in that it tastes absolutely vile (not a surprise), so it is impossible to double-blind a sublingual administration - even if I knew of an inactive equally-vile-tasting substitute, I’m not sure I would subject myself to it. To compensate for ingesting the coluracetam, it would make sense to double the dose to 20mg (turning the 2g into <100 doses). Whether the effects persist over multiple days is not clear; I’ll assume it does not until someone says it does, since this makes things much easier.

Finally, it’s not clear that caffeine results in performance gains after long-term use; homeostasis/tolerance is a concern for all stimulants, but especially for caffeine. It is plausible that all caffeine consumption does for the long-term chronic user is restore performance to baseline. (Imagine someone waking up and drinking coffee, and their performance improves - well, so would the performance of a non-addict who is also slowly waking up!) See for example, James & Rogers 2005, Sigmon et al 2009, and Rogers et al 2010. A cross-section of thousands of participants in the Cambridge brain-training study found caffeine intake showed negligible effect sizes for mean and component scores (participants were not told to use caffeine, but the training was recreational & difficult, so one expects some difference).

20 March, 2x 13mg; first time, took around 11:30AM, half-life 3 hours, so halved by 2:30PM. Initial reaction: within 20 minutes, started to feel light-headed, experienced a bit of physical clumsiness while baking bread (dropped things or poured too much thrice); that began to pass in an hour, leaving what felt like a cheerier mood and less anxiety. Seems like it mostly wore off by 6PM. Redosed at 8PM TODO: maybe take a look at the HRV data? looks interestingly like HRV increased thanks to the tianeptine 21 March, 2x17mg; seemed to buffer effects of FBI visit 22 March, 2x 23 March, 2x 24 March, 2x 25 March, 2x 26 March, 2x 27 March, 2x 28 March, 2x 7 April, 2x 8 April, 2x 9 April, 2x 10 April, 2x 11 April, 2x 12 April, 2x 23 April, 2x 24 April, 2x 25 April, 2x 26 April, 2x 27 April, 2x 28 April, 2x 29 April, 2x 7 May, 2x 8 May, 2x 9 May, 2x 10 May, 2x 3 June, 2x 4 June, 2x 5 June, 2x 30 June, 2x 30 July, 1x 31 July, 1x 1 August, 2x 2 August, 2x 3 August, 2x 5 August, 2x 6 August, 2x 8 August, 2x 10 August, 2x 12 August: 2x 14 August: 2x 15 August: 2x 16 August: 1x 18 August: 2x 19 August: 2x 21 August: 2x 23 August: 1x 24 August: 1x 25 August: 1x 26 August: 2x 27 August: 1x 29 August: 2x 30 August: 1x 02 September: 1x 04 September: 1x 07 September: 2x 20 September: 1x 21 September: 2x 24 September: 2x 25 September: 2x 26 September: 2x 28 September: 2x 29 September: 2x 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October: 2x 04 October: 2x 05 October: 2x 06 October: 2x 07 October: 2x 08 October: 2x 09 October: 2x 10 October: 2x 11 October: 2x 12 October: 2x 13 October: 2x 14 October: 2x 15 October: 2x 16 October: 2x 17 October: 2x 18 October: 2x 20 October: 2x 21 October: 2x 22 October: 2x 23 October: 2x 24 October: 2x 25 October: 2x 26 October: 2x 27 October: 2x 28 October: 2x 29 October: 2x 30 October: 2x 31 October: 2x 01 November: 2x 02 November: 2x 03 November: 2x 04 November: 2x 05 November: 2x 06 November: 2x 07 November: 2x 08 November: 2x 09 November: 2x 10 November: 2x 11 November: 2x 12 November: 2x 13 November: 2x 14 November: 2x 15 November: 2x 16 November: 2x 17 November: 2x 18 November: 2x 19 November: 2x 20 November: 2x 21 November: 2x 22 November: 2x 23 November: 2x 24 November: 2x 25 November: 2x 26 November: 2x 27 November: 2x 28 November: 2x 29 November: 2x 30 November: 2x 01 December: 2x 02 December: 2x 03 December: 2x 04 December: 2x 05 December: 2x 06 December: 2x 07 December: 2x 08 December: 2x 09 December: 2x 10 December: 2x 11 December: 2x 12 December: 2x 13 December: 2x 14 December: 2x 15 December: 2x 16 December: 2x 17 December: 2x 18 December: 2x 19 December: 2x 20 December: 2x 21 December: 2x 22 December: 2x 23 December: 2x 24 December: 2x 25 December: 2x ran out, last day: 25 December 2017 –>
Seriously Man, you obviously have a deep love of God and the teachings of Jesus. You’re not being watched and judged like some kindergartener to make sure you obey the teacher. You were given a mind and free will to explore the world both physical and spiritual. If you do it in the spirit of God’s love and the love of four fellow man, AND YOURSELF….don’t forget God loves you too, then the only darkness here is the judgement you’re putting on yourself and your own actions. Jesus said the kingdom of heaven is within…..he meant within YOU, each of us. Your looking without and asking is it OK? If it brings you closer to the light of the spirit it’s OK, if you make a mistake, it’s OK. This very wise woman, brimming with God’s love said to me one day, with all the love and joy I’ve ever seen in someone’s heart………” I just had the most incredible realization.” ” What, I said” ” God forgives us for our sins before we even commit them” My hair immediately stood on end in response to the deep truth of this which to me is ,,,,,,,,,GOD, the UNIVERSAL SPIRIT WHICH IS ALL CREATION DOES NOT JUDGE” Judgement is in the prevue of Man in an effort to control other men. You are free, and always have been and always will be. You are loved, always have been and always will be. It just the way things are, it’s called perfection.
There is no official data on their usage, but nootropics as well as other smart drugs appear popular in the Silicon Valley. “I would say that most tech companies will have at least one person on something,” says Noehr. It is a hotbed of interest because it is a mentally competitive environment, says Jesse Lawler, a LA based software developer and nootropics enthusiast who produces the podcast Smart Drug Smarts. “They really see this as translating into dollars.” But Silicon Valley types also do care about safely enhancing their most prized asset – their brains – which can give nootropics an added appeal, he says.
Eventually one morning you wake up and realize it has been years since you felt like yourself. It takes so much more effort than it did before to string thoughts together. Your clarity is gone, you can never focus for more than two seconds at a time, and penetrating insights have been replaced by a swamp of distraction, confusion, and forgetfulness. Your thoughts feel frayed, worn—like ragged fabric flapping in the breeze.
Between midnight and 1:36 AM, I do four rounds of n-back: 50/39/30/55%. I then take 1/4th of the pill and have some tea. At roughly 1:30 AM, AngryParsley linked a SF anthology/novel, Fine Structure, which sucked me in for the next 3-4 hours until I finally finished the whole thing. At 5:20 AM, circumstances forced me to go to bed, still having only taken 1/4th of the pill and that determines this particular experiment of sleep; I quickly do some n-back: 29/20/20/54/42. I fall asleep in 13 minutes and sleep for 2:48, for a ZQ of 28 (a full night being ~100). I did not notice anything from that possible modafinil+caffeine interaction. Subjectively upon awakening: I don’t feel great, but I don’t feel like 2-3 hours of sleep either. N-back at 10 AM after breakfast: 25/54/44/38/33. These are not very impressive, but seem normal despite taking the last armodafinil ~9 hours ago; perhaps the 3 hours were enough. Later that day, at 11:30 PM (just before bed): 26/56/47.
There are a ton of great rosemary snack options. Personally, I always keep some flavored natural sea salts in my desk to spice up my snacks and meals at the office. Here’s a great option for rosemary flavored sea salt. Another great choice is the Parmesan Rosemary Popcorn from Quinn’s Popcorn. They never use GMO corn, coatings or chemicals on the bag, or any other scary stuff found in traditional microwave popcorn. This is truly microwave popcorn reinvented.
She says purified water is bad because essential minerals are missing. She makes the ludicrous claim that purified water is “entirely incapable of hydrating you”! As sources of water she recommends coconut water and aloe vera juice, but she doesn’t provide any evidence that they have significantly beneficial effects compared to plain old tap water. She says energy drinks are not good for you because they are “chockful of manufactured minerals and salts.” Again, no references.
You have probably heard and you already love the term “soul food.” You should know that there’s “brain food” too. Natural supplements are the best way to express your gratitude for all the hard work your brain does for you around the clock. These products aren’t reserved only for the elderly users. On the contrary, if you start using them while you’re still young and sharp, you can ensure the proper protection against all those age-related mental deterioration processes.
This research is in contrast to the other substances I like, such as piracetam or fish oil. I knew about withdrawal of course, but it was not so bad when I was drinking only tea. And the side-effects like jitteriness are worse on caffeine without tea; I chalk this up to the lack of theanine. (My later experiences with theanine seems to confirm this.) These negative effects mean that caffeine doesn’t satisfy the strictest definition of nootropic (having no negative effects), but is merely a cognitive enhancer (with both benefits & costs). One might wonder why I use caffeine anyway if I am so concerned with mental ability.
Modafinil is a stimulant specifically designed to reduce fatigue and sleepiness. It was approved for treatment of narcolepsy in 1998, and although the exact mechanism behind its effects is not fully understood, most research indicates that modafinil also works by inhibiting reuptake of dopamine, which produces effects similar to those of methylphenidate. It’s also believed that by inhibiting dopamine uptake, more acetylcholine (another neurotransmitter) is released by the hippocampus, which leads to improved cognitive performance, specifically memory.
I met Alex one evening last summer, at an appealingly scruffy bar in the New England city where he lives. Skinny and bearded, and wearing faded hipster jeans, he looked like the lead singer in an indie band. He was ingratiating and articulate, and smoked cigarettes with an ironic air of defiance. Alex was happy enough to talk about his frequent use of Adderall at Harvard, but he didn't want to see his name in print; he's involved with an internet start-up and worried that potential investors might disapprove of his habit.
Caffeine metabolism is primarily determined by the cytochrome enzyme P-450 1A2 (CYP1A2), and studies have shown that different ethnic populations exhibit widely varying expressions of the gene responsible for CYP1A2. Evidence suggests that a particular CYP1A2 impacts caffeine consumption by modifying the risks of certain diseases that are associated with caffeine consumption. It has also been shown that variations in the expression of genes that code for adenosine and dopamine receptors play a role in mediating your response to caffeine. For example, in Caucasians, the presence of certain genetic expressions for both adenosine and dopamine receptors is associated with caffeine-induced anxiety. Variations in CYP1A2 are also responsible for the speed at which different people metabolize caffeine.
Safety Warning — Do not exceed recommended dose. Not intended for pregnant or nursing mothers or children under the age of 18. Individuals taking blood thinners, any other medications, or have any known medical conditions should consult a physician before using any herbal supplements. Discontinue use and consult your doctor if any adverse reactions occur. Not intended to medical conditions; consult a physician before beginning any weight loss program. KEEP OUT OF REACH OF CHILDREN. DO NOT USE IF SAFETY SEAL IS DAMAGED OR MISSING. KEEP BOTTLE CLOSED TIGHTLY AND STORE IN A COOL, DRY PLACE. These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. Keep out of reach of children. Do not use if safety seal is damaged or missing. Store in a cool, dry place. CAUTION: Do not exceed recommended dose. St. John’s Wort may contribute to photosensitivity resulting in skin irritation and redness in persons exposed to strong sunlight or tanning booths. Avoid use in patients at risk of bleeding, taking anticoagulants, or with clotting disorders, based on case reports of bleeding. Discontinue use 2-3 weeks prior to some surgical and dental procedures due to increased risk of bleeding. Avoid use in couples who are trying to conceive, based on theoretical reduction of fertility. Pregnant or nursing mothers, children under 18, individuals with history of seizure, taking MAO inhibiting drugs, or with a known medical condition should consult a physician before using this or any dietary supplement. This product is manufactured and packaged in a facility which may also process milk, soy, wheat, egg, peanuts, tree nuts, fish and crustacean shellfish. This product is a dietary supplement. If you feel an adverse reaction, please contact our support staff immediately to notify us of the issue so that we can offer assistance. Please consult with a physician prior to beginning this supplement. This product has not been approved by the Food and Drug Administration. Always consult your physician or licensed qualified healthcare professional before using this product. If you begin to experience any side effects, consult your doctor, discontinue use and contact us for a full refund. Your doctor will have your extensive medical health history as well as knowledge of what other substances you are consuming, which is important when taking a supplement. We recommend that you do not rely solely on the information presented and that you always read labels, warnings, and directions before using or consuming a product. Do not use if seal around cap is broken or missing.
l-Theanine – A 2014 systematic review and meta-analysis found that concurrent caffeine and l-theanine use had synergistic psychoactive effects that promoted alertness, attention, and task switching;[29] these effects were most pronounced during the first hour post-dose.[29] However, the European Food Safety Authority reported that, when L-theanine is used by itself (i.e. without caffeine), there is insufficient information to determine if these effects exist.[34]